


Catty

by cathrheas



Series: Commissions [11]
Category: Fire Emblem Series, Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: F/F, Fluff and Humor, Multi, Polyamory Negotiations, catherine canonically never knows whats going on, thats why she needs 2 smart girlfriends. to make up for her 0 brains
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-21
Updated: 2020-03-21
Packaged: 2021-03-01 03:20:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,521
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23238349
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cathrheas/pseuds/cathrheas
Summary: Catherine's girlfriends don't get along, until they do.
Relationships: Catherine/Rhea (Fire Emblem), Catherine/Shamir Nevrand, Catherine/Shamir Nevrand/Rhea, Shamir Nevrand/Rhea
Series: Commissions [11]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1753813
Comments: 2
Kudos: 59





	Catty

**Author's Note:**

> A commission for my dude Sean! Feel free to check out [my Twitter](https://twitter.com/cathrheas)!

_ Damn it. I forgot whose day it is. _

Dinnertime was a hotly contested area of the day for Rhea and Shamir. Sure, Catherine knew she was stunningly gorgeous and amazingly charismatic, but she felt almost a little threatened by Shamir and Rhea’s rivalry over her. Every time she felt as if they weren’t really being serious about it, she’d catch a sharp gaze from one of them—they were both  _ very _ good at giving those—and she’d change her mind.

It would be a catastrophe if she went to have dinner with the wrong person, but she really couldn’t remember who had claimed dinnertime with her that evening. 

_ Maybe it’s better if I just go to my room and have it by myself, _ Catherine thought. She looked down at her plate; she’d be really upset if her food got cold. 

Just in time, though, Shamir came towards her with a plate of food. It was significantly emptier than Catherine’s, but she always tended to eat light. “Hey there, partner,” Catherine greeted, giving Shamir a kiss on the cheek.

“Hey yourself. Aren’t you supposed to be eating with Rhea?”

“Huh. I guess I am.”

“...Whatever that means. Don’t linger around me too long, or she’ll start complaining that I stole you away.”

Catherine scoffed. “Do you really think Rhea would do something as petty as that? You might just be thinking about yourself.”

“No. I have better things to do than argue with her,” Shamir retorted, coolly. “But it’s a lot harder to avoid an altercation when she actively drags me into one.”

“I still don’t think she’d do that.” Catherine paused. “Actually, I’ve never _ seen _ her do that...”

“Probably because you’re making a subconscious effort not to be with the two of us in the same room. C’mon, I’ll walk you up to her.”

Shamir started towards the upper floor of Garreg Mach as if the conversation was over, but it was far from over. “What do you mean? I’m not trying to do that!”

“Yes, which is why it’s subconscious,” Shamir said. “Look. Me and Rhea get into spats over you, and you know it. I know you  _ act _ like it’s nice to be fought over, but I can tell you don’t really like it. When’s the last time you’ve been around the two of us at the same time for more than five minutes? Better yet—when have you been around the two of us, and it  _ wasn’t _ work-related?”

_ She really lays it on thick. _ Catherine was wracking her brain as they went up the stairs, but she couldn’t think of anything. It must have been subconscious. She loved both Rhea and Shamir, and she wished they got along. But they didn’t, and...yeah, she didn’t really want to see them argue. 

Still, avoidance wouldn’t solve the problem. Although it was certainly  _ easier _ to ignore things that were annoying or troublesome, matters of the heart were a bit more sensitive. “Okay, you’re right. But it’s not too late! I can be around the both of you. In fact, we can do it right now! Come eat dinner with us.”

Shamir stopped in the middle of the staircase, turning and looking at Catherine. Yeah, her and Rhea definitely had the death stare down pat. “Why would you even ask me that?”

“What? We shouldn’t?”

“No, we shouldn’t. I’m not going to step on Rhea’s toes like that. We both agreed this was the best way to—”

“Don’t I get any say?” Shamir remained silent and kept walking. Once they got to the landing, Catherine continued, “I know I’m in the middle of all this, but...that’s even more reason why I should have an opinion.”

“Catherine,  _ you’re _ the one who suggested Rhea and I work it out amongst ourselves.”

“Well, yeah, but I thought you two would be civil. But you’re not being civil. You’re being...I dunno.” Catherine wanted to say  _ catty, _ but that wouldn’t have ended well. Shamir tended to be immovable, and so was Rhea. They were right in front of the entrance to the audience chamber. “Come on, Shamir. Let’s just try it. Me being there might make it better.”

Shamir wanted to argue, it looked like, but they both turned away from each other when they heard the sound of Rhea’s voice coming from the office. “Catherine? Is that you?”

“Yes, it is!” Catherine took Shamir’s hand, pulling her towards the door. Shamir followed her, surprisingly, right into Rhea’s office.

“I was getting worried about you! I almost sent Seteth to—” Rhea stopped in her tracks as she noticed Shamir. “Oh. Shamir.”

Shamir didn’t even offer Rhea a nod. “Rhea.”

_ This...this is tense. _ “Um, Rhea? I thought it’d be nice if Shamir ate dinner with us today.”

Catherine watched Rhea’s face carefully, but nothing changed except her eyes. They slanted slightly, but she was still smiling. “How quaint. If I may ask, whose idea was this?”

“It was mine.”

“I see! In that case, it’s fine. Whatever makes you most comfortable.” Rhea moved some papers off of her desk, making room for Shamir and Catherine to sit.

That was a bit of a snide remark, Catherine could admit, but she was sure Shamir had said worse. Of course, Shamir didn’t let it go unanswered, retorting as soon as they settled into their chairs. “Thank the Goddess it wasn’t my idea, right?”

Rhea cleared her throat. “Well, Shamir—”

“Anyway,” Catherine interjected, “how’s the day going for you two?”

“Rather busy,” Rhea said. Catherine loved to watch her eat. She so daintily cut her food into little pieces and forked them into her mouth. Shamir had made remarks before about how stupidly infatuated Catherine was with Rhea, but the same was true for Shamir, too; Catherine would just look at Shamir sometimes, look into the deep purple of her eyes and zone out. Despite what Shamir and Rhea might have thought, she really did love both of them equally.

“It was okay,” Shamir said.

And then, Rhea and Shamir began to eat, in utter silence. They were pointedly looking at one another, Catherine noticed; if anything, she felt completely ignored, being caught up in their rivalry. 

_ Shamir was definitely right. I don’t really like sitting here when they’re like this, _ Catherine thought, looking back and forth between the two of them. Catherine never turned down a good meal, but it was hard to feel appetized when the room was clouded with malice. She had to do something.

“Say, Rhea. What made you let Shamir join the Knights of Seiros?”

Shamir and Rhea looked equally miffed by the question.  _ At least they have something in common. _ “What prompted you to ask that, my dear?”

“Just out of curiosity.”

“Well, if I must...”  _ Yes, you must. Please. _ “I thought her skill would be useful here, is all.”

Catherine hummed. “Really? That’s it? Anybody can get skilled with a bow. There’s got to be something else, right?”

“...She has a loyal spirit at her core. That’s a respectable quality in any knight.”

Shamir was looking less irritated by the second. Catherine was watching her reaction rather closely; was that a blush on her cheeks? “I’m only loyal to those who deserve it. You did me a favor, and I’m repaying the debt.”

“And yet, there are some who don’t feel any need to repay their debts. If you won’t call it loyalty, it is righteousness at the least.”

“Maybe.”

Shamir’s response was curt, but she sounded surprised with herself, as if she didn’t expect to respond so calmly. Rhea seemed to be feeling much the same. She went back to pushing food around her plate and delicately bringing it to her mouth.

Cathetine decided to take another stab at it. “I’m glad you came, Shamir. Aren’t you glad, too?”

Shamir kept eating. Rhea was looking distantly at her bookshelf, playing with the ends of her hair.

_ Okay, fine. Maybe that’s enough progress for today. _

* * *

Rhea might have been just as petty as Shamir made her out to be. The next day, she summoned Shamir and Catherine to her office for breakfast. “It’s only fair that we spend another meal as three. After all, it would be rather one-sided if only I had to give up a meal time with you, wouldn’t it?”

Catherine was starting to see the differences between them more clearly: Rhea didn’t mind being outwardly possessive, but Shamir was more of a work-from-the-shadows type, as always. Shamir preferred to show emotion through subtle action, while Rhea conveyed things through outwardly polite but ultimately aggressive words.

However, Shamir didn’t react negatively to what Rhea said. In fact, she agreed. “I don’t mind it. It’s the fairest way to go about things.”

As they sat down to eat, Catherine tried again to forge some friendliness between them. “Rhea, Shamir was really concerned about upsetting you when we ate together yesterday.”

“Why, exactly, did you feel the need to say that?” Shamir snapped.

“Just making conversation.”

“Well,” Rhea began, “I...must say I’m surprised by that.”

Shamir thoughtfully chewed on her roll, looking around the office. “You said I’m righteous, right? We agreed that last night was your night to eat with her. So I didn’t want to intrude. Isn’t that righteousness?”

Rhea perked up. “Yes, I did say that. I suppose you’re right. Thank you. And...” Rhea sighed, looking Shamir in the face. For once, there didn’t seem to be any animosity in her gaze. “I apologize, if I’ve ever acted unseemly towards you.”

“I don’t hold grudges,” Shamir responded. That was probably as much of an acceptance as Rhea was going to get, Catherine thought, but Shamir went even further. “You act like that because you love Catherine, right? I can respect that, at least.”

“I certainly do,” Rhea said. She was nearly beaming at her own admission, and if Catherine wasn’t mistaken, there was the slightest hint of a smile on Shamir’s face, too. “When I’m thinking clearly, I realize that it’s a little counterproductive to not be friendly with you in this regard, isn’t it? If it’s for Catherine’s sake.”

_ This is going great! The Goddess must be working hard today. _ Catherine didn’t speak, letting Rhea and Shamir sort it out themselves. Maybe all she needed was to just sit there.

“So it is. I could stand to be a little more cordial. But don’t expect any special treatment.”

“Why, asking that from you would be a fruitless endeavor, I’m sure. Cordiality is all I ask. I’ll be sure to pay it forward.”

“Look at you two! Fast friends,” Catherine quipped.

“We’re not friends,” Shamir said.

“‘Friends’ is a bit of a strong word,” Rhea agreed.

_ I guess two days wasn’t enough to figure this out. _

* * *

Catherine had almost hoped that Rhea and Shamir would invite the other for mealtimes, but that didn’t seem to be the case. They took their time with Catherine just as they always did, but something unexpected happened—they started asking about each other.

Rhea started off, the more amiable of the two. “Catherine, pray tell—what does Shamir do in her spare time?”

“She likes gambling pretty often. Why do you ask?”

“Gambling? Why, that’s rather interesting. I had no reason behind asking. I’m just curious.”

Within the next day, Shamir was asking about Rhea, too. “You know about her combat experience, don’t you? Rhea, I mean. Tell me a little bit about it.”

“She’s experienced in the sword and faith magic, but believe it or not, she’s an impressive grappler. Why?”

“...She says she can defend herself. I can’t help wondering how. A grappler, huh? That was unexpected.”

And so on and so forth. It was a little surreal, to be able to talk to her lovers about one another, but Catherine was excited. She loved both of them, truly, and she liked bragging about them to anybody who’d listen. She liked telling Rhea about Shamir’s blackjack streaks, she liked telling Shamir about Rhea’s battle stories. It was fun.

Then, they stopped asking Catherine about one another. Instead, they just started having conversations.

Catherine first overheard them in the audience hall when Shamir was coming back with a report. She wanted to butt in the conversation, assuming it was related to her and Shamir’s recent mission, but she decided to just linger outside of the room when she realized it wasn’t work-related at all.

Shamir might have heard Catherine approaching normally, but she was rather engrossed in the conversation she was having. “See, you have twelve right now.”

“Twelve...? Ah, I see. The queen is worth ten.” Catherine had never expected Rhea to be interested in gambling, of all things...but she was rather wise. Maybe she was doing it for the sake of knowledge?

“Yes. So, in this case, it’s wise to call for a hit.”

“I see. Okay. I’d like another card, then, please.” Catherine heard the silent movement of cards. “Ah, another queen. That means—”

“Bust. You lose. Again.”

“I’m not very good at these kinds of things...I’m rather unlucky.”

“It’s not just luck. It takes time to learn.”

“To learn? There are more rules?” 

“Not rules. Tactics. You can count cards to get an advantage, but experienced gamblers use more than one deck, so it’s more difficult to do that if you’re playing with pros.”

“This sounds rather complicated. You must be rather talented to win so easily.”

“Talented? No.” Shamir sounded so coquettish, so bashful...it was sort of disarming. “It’s a learned skill like any other. Cyril picked it up pretty quickly, and he’d never touched a deck of cards before. I’ll teach you. You’re running a whole church, aren’t you? You have to be pretty smart. I’m sure you’ll learn fast.”

And then the conversation turned to counting cards, and Catherine was left reeling. They were having a conversation? Casually? All by themselves? Catherine almost felt a little left out, but she was feeling too happy to be down about it. She considered asking them about it later, but...

_ Nah. They’re doing good on their own. _

* * *

Neither Rhea nor Shamir mentioned the blackjack game, but Catherine didn’t sweat it. Really, she was just happy they were being civil. However, something even stranger happened next.

Shamir wasn’t unskilled with gauntlets by any means, but she preferred using a bow—close-range combat was never her forte, nor her interest. Despite that, Catherine came to the training grounds and found Shamir there wearing gauntlets and pummeling a dummy. She was rather skilled, actually.

“Heya, partner!”

Shamir didn’t stop swinging. “Hey.”

“Uh...am I allowed to ask why you’re doing this?”

“Training?”

“Yeah. I mean, no—with gauntlets. Why the gauntlets?”

“Well.”  _ Punch. _ “Since you said Rhea knew how to brawl...”  _ Punch, kick, punch, punch. _ “I decided to mention it to her.”  _ Punch, punch, kick. _ “So we’re having a spar tomorrow.”

“A spar? With Rhea? That’s so awesome! When and where?”

Shamir finally gave up her assault on the dummy, hardly out of breath. “Here. Midnight.”

“Why so late?”

“I don’t think she wants the students seeing her getting beat up, is all.”

Catherine rolled her eyes. “You seem confident you’re gonna beat her.”

“She taught me a few of her techniques last night.”  _ Yeah. That fighting style looked familiar. _ “It won’t be hard to beat her at her own game. She is surprisingly fit, though. Definitely a fair match. I didn’t know she had so much battle experience.”

“Yup! She’s a warrior, through and through,” Catherine said, grinning. She felt like a proud mom. She definitely wanted to cheer both of them on, but she was concerned she might interrupt the good rhythm they had going.  _ Hm...I’ll stay out of the way. Can’t get too greedy. After all, it’s only been two days...no way they’re best friends already. Not to mention, Shamir made no effort to invite me. _ “Let me know who wins, alright? Good luck to both of you. Gimme a fair fight, too—no playing dirty!”

Shamir chuckled a bit. “Of course. No playing dirty.”

* * *

It was hard to resist going to the training grounds anyway, but Catherine just went to sleep, and woke up excited to have breakfast with Shamir and find out the victor. It really didn’t matter who won. Catherine was just happy to see them bonding, even if it was just a little.

Before she could make her way to Shamir, though, Rhea sought her out, making a surprise appearance in the dining hall. The students were murmuring amongst themselves, but Rhea paid them no mind. “Catherine? Could you come to my office, please?”

“Uh...isn’t today Shamir’s day for breakfast? I might have forgotten, but—”

“No need to worry. She is also in my office.”

“But I haven’t even gotten my food—” 

“Please, follow me.”

Rhea walked away, and Catherine had no choice but to follow. Rhea kept a brisk pace—was it because she hated being seen, or because something important was happening? Catherine decided to keep her mouth shut as they approached the office. She was a little scared, though. Did the outcome of the fight stir up the old bad blood between them?

When they entered the office, Rhea took her routine seat behind her desk, and Catherine sat across from her. Shamir was seated comfortably in a chair, looking at Catherine evenly. “Good morning.”

“Good morning? What’s happening, exactly?” Catherine laughed, but she didn’t feel at all at ease. “More importantly, who won the fight?”

“The fight?” Rhea asked. Then, she gasped. “Yes! The fight. Yes, well...my apologies for being so flustered. This is a strange situation for all three of us, I’m sure, but I pray we can navigate it as quickly and comfortably as possible.”

“...What situation? You mean, me dating both of you?”

Shamir seemed impatient, as if she had already expected Catherine to figure it out.  _ Sorry, but I don’t have a clue. _ “No. Not that. The spar last night.”

“Yeah, who won? Is that the problem?”

“Nobody won, Catherine. We didn’t finish,” Rhea said. She was grimacing. “We...got distracted.”

“Distracted? Did you start arguing?”

Shamir sighed. “No. We were not arguing. We were kissing.”

Catherine looked at both of them, waiting for a “gotcha”. But Rhea hardly ever made jokes that cruel or that funny, and Shamir never made jokes at all. Shamir looked as if she wanted to be anywhere but there, and Rhea was decidedly not making eye contact with anyone.

They were serious.

“I am  _ so _ confused,” Catherine said. “This...I didn’t expect this. I wanted you guys to be friendly and all, but—”

“I would just like to state that, upon discussion, we have both agreed that we did not intend for things to go in this direction,” Rhea explained. She was using her archbishop voice, which made Catherine wonder if she really meant what she was saying. “Truly, we wanted to bond on a platonic level for your sake. Shamir came to me personally and expressed concern for you, and we thought it’d be best if we settled things properly. Unexpectedly, we began to...take interest in one another.”

“Th-that’s really sweet, and I appreciate the effort, but I still don’t understand how you guys ended up kissing.”

“It just happened,” Shamir stated. Like it was a matter of fact. “We were brawling, and then we ended up kissing. Sometimes, that’s just how things go.”  _ I don’t think things ever go like that! _ “Are you upset? It sounds like you are.”

“What? No! This is just—an unexpected development.” Catherine looked at Shamir, then at Rhea. Them? Kissing each other? That was...actually pretty nice to imagine. “Yeah. Maybe this is a good thing. No, it’s definitely a good thing.”

“Don’t get ahead of yourself. We don’t really know where this is going to go,” Shamir reminded. “Rhea just thought it would be nice if we were honest with you.”

“To be fair, we didn’t know where this was all going to go the first time.” Catherine couldn’t help smiling, thinking about all the time she’d spent trying to choose between Shamir and Rhea—only for them to end up choosing each other. Funny how things work out. “This is a pretty good turn of events, if I may say so. Lucky me, huh?”

“I’m so relieved. We were both concerned you’d be upset,” Rhea said. “I’m very pleased with your response. I can only hope that Shamir and I will grow closer in the coming times.”

“Yeah, me too,” Catherine said. “This is great! I can’t believe we came so far from you guys being all catty to each other. That really sucked.”

“...’Catty’?” Rhea frowned. “I don’t believe  _ I _ was...’catty’.”

“She must be talking about you. It wasn’t me.”

“Shamir, darling, I believe you agreed that you could improve on cordiality. Did you not?”

“I did. But not being cordial and being catty are two different things.”

“Perhaps I am misunderstanding the definition of the word.”

“You must be. Perhaps almost as much as you misunderstand blackjack.”

_ Seems like peacetime never lasts long these days... _


End file.
